Wire splicing tool



July 17, 1934.

|..- o RUSSA 1,966,593

WIRE SPLICING TOOL Filed June 5, 1933 v J6 I T [021 1266 0faaisx users hand and thus transmitting an electric shock. Fur many of these devices the means for holding with the tool clamped about, the

Patented July 17,

My invention relates ,.L9e 9 I sP I'omGf roo 7 Lorence ORussa, Princeville, ,111. assignmto Mathias Klein & Sons, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Application June 5, 1933, Serial No. 674,336 3 Claims (Cl. 140-418) generally to gripping tools such as pliers, tongs, etc., and more particularly to improvements in a gripping tool for wire ing.

splic- I It is an object of my invention to provide a gripping tool having improved means for holding the jaws in clamping engagement with the work.

A further object is to provide an improved gripping tool for wire splicing which may be used with a high degree of safety in electrical construction and repair work.

Other objects will appear from the following description, reference being had to the accomapplied the line panying drawing,

in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the tool showing it to a wire splicing sleeve;

Fig. 2 is an elevational View thereof taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a plan view;

Fig. 4 is a transverse 4- 1: of Fig. 2;

sectional view taken on and Fig. 5 is a fragmentary elevation showing the jaws reversed.

In the use of pliers, tongs, and similar gripping toois it is frequently d esirable to clamp the tool to the work so as to relieve the user of the necessity of maintaining a upon the handle of the tight tool. Various expedients for accomplishing this purpose have been proposed and many used not with safety be app for use in electrical construction and repair but these devices could lied to a tool of this type Work,

since in most of these devices the clamping mechanism was of metal and attached to the ends of the handles where it handles together work were not adjustable for would be touched by the present a possibility of thermore, in the use with pieces of work of different sizes.

The clamping device which I have provided may be used on tools having insulated handles and may be very easily operated to hold the jaws firmly clamped together.

The tool shown for purposes of illustration comprises a pair of jaws 10, at their ends by a pair connected to the jaws The jaws 10, 12 are preferably forged integrally 12 which are joined of links 14, 16 pivotally by shouldered rivets 18.

with handles 20, 22, the major portions of which are covered with lating material.

a suitable coating 24 of insu- The handle 20 has a cylindrical shank portion 26 adjacent the jaw 10, while the handle 22 has a corres ponding shank portion 28 clamping pressure which is tapered. A hook 30 is mountedfor rotation and sliding movement upon the cylindrical shank portion 26, and has a bill 32 arranged to engage about the tapered shank portion 28. The

jaws 10, 12 may have any suitably conformed I gripping surface, and are shown as provided with recesses 34. adapted to encompass a wire splicing sleeve 36 and deform it tightly about the two conducting wires 38, and upon their other faces with recesses 40 adapte When the gripping tool is to be attached to a d to grip a wire.

splicing sleeve as shown in Fig. 1, it is applied thereto in the usual manner, and when the jaws have been hock 30 is swung from the dotted line position in in Fig. 4 to the full line posiwhich it is shown firmly pressed about the sleeve the tion' shown in said figure, and then slid away from the jaws until the bill of the hook wedges against the tapered surface of the shank portion 28 and thus firmly The angle of the taper will be frictionally held holds'the jaws together. '75 is such that the hook 3O in position.

When it is desired to clamp the tool upon a wire the jaws may be swung about so as to bring the recesses 40 in clamping engagement abouta wire, and the hook 30 operated in a manner similar to that above desc the tool is swung about ribed to clamp the jaws together about the wire as shown in Fig. 5. In

using the tool in electrical accidental shock is greatly reduced since the ends of the handles are thoroughly insulated, and as work, the danger of in twisting the connecting sleeve 36 the possibility of the engagement of an exposed metallic portion of the tool live conductor is reduced.

While I have shown with a and described particular embodiments of .my invention it will be readily understood by those ski lled in the art that variations may be made in the constructions disclosed without departing from invention. I therefore do not wish to be limited the basic features of my to the precise construction disclosed but wish to include within the scope of my invention all such modifications and variations which will readily suggest themselves. v

new and desire to secure by What I claim as Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. A gripping tool comprising a pair of pivoted members each comprising a jaw, a shank, a

handle portion, the shank of one of said members being substantially cylindrical and the shank of the otherof said members being tapered, and a hook pivotally and slidably mounted upon said cylindrical shank and to hook over said taper constructed and arranged ed shank portion and by I being slid toward the portion of the tapered shank of greater diameter to hold the jaws in tight engagement about an object to be held.

2. A gripping tool comprising a pair of pivotally joined members, work engaging jaws formed on said members at adjacent ends thereof, handles at the other ends of said members, one of saidmembers having a cylindrical shank portion and the other member having a tapered shank portion, and a hook pivoted on said cylindrical shank portion and slidable longitudinally thereof, said hook being engageable withsaidtapered shank portion at any point thereof necessary to hold the jaws in gripping engagement with the work.

3. A gripping too-l comprising a pair of members each comprising a jaw, a shank portion and an insulated handle, the shank portion of one of said members being tapered and the shank portion of the other of said members being cylindrical, a link connection between the ends of said jaws for pivotally connecting said members to enable one of said'jaws to be swung through an angle ofapproximately 180 relative to the other jaw thereby to bring opposite sides of said jaws into position for engaging a piece of Work, and ahook mounted for pivotal and longitudinal sliding movement on the shank portion of one of said members and adapted to have its hook engaged over the shank portion of the other member.

LORENCE ORUSSA. 

